1813.] Mr. Lucas, in reply to an Anonymous Critic. Cuvier, and many other persons, err in ascribing it to Dr. Maskelyne or to Mr. Cavendish. I cannot conclude without remarking that, though Dr. Hutton had no reason to doubt the accuracy of his computations, he expressed in the paper, from which I have last quoted, some doubts as to the correctness of the assumption of the density of the hill, and pointed out methods by which that assumption might be corrected. He went farther. Feeling constantly a desire to give the finishing and correcting stroke to these computations, I very well remember hearing him, about nine or ten years ago, urge the learned Mr. Professor Playfair, of Edinburgh, either to make, or to pro. cure and communicate to him, such more accurate observations upon the geological structure of the hill, as would enable him to give the utmost precision to his results, of which they were susceptible. From the information transmitted by Mr. Playfair, the doctor inferred that the mean specific gravity of Schehallien is about 2.7 or 2.8, its constituent varieties being reduced to three kinds, the specific gravity of one being 2'4, of ano ther about 2-75, and some parts as high as 3, and even 3.2. Thus, then, taking 2.75 as the mean, he obtains × 24 , or almost 5, for the mean density of the whole mass of the earth; a result which was first given, I believe, by the doctor himself in part 55 of the New Abridgment of the Philosophical Transactions, published in 1808, and repeated in the re-publication of the whole paper, in the second volume of his 8vo. Tracts. Professor Playfair has recently gone over all the computations necessary to determine this point, de novo, making use of his own observations as to the mineralogical constitution of the bill; and his results confirm, in a remarkable manner (see Phil. Transac. for 1811) the accuracy of the calculations and de ductions made by Dr. Hutton. I have dwelt longer upon this subject than might otherwise have been necessary, in order that here, as well as upon other topics, "Honour should be given where honour is due." One of the strongest incitements to men of science is, "the quiet and peaceable possession" of the fame accruing from their inventions and discoveries; and one of the greatest mortifications to which a man of virtue and ingenuity can be subjected, must be to see the result of his learning, MONTHLY MAG. No. 237. his science, his labours, and investiga To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. SIR, has often afforded to an author assail. ed by some bandit of literature, a small space for defence and triumph, to ask the like favour for one, who knows not (exclusive of the advantageous respectability, independence, and great circulation, of the Monthly Magazine) where else to apply. I will strictly confine myself to this wretch's discomfiture, and my charge shall be single, clear, and concise-that, the British Critic's Review (in February 1812, which by chance I heard of) of JOSEPH, a religious Poem, is FALSE. AM induced, by that liberality which The work is of considerable extent, and aims to embrace the whole of the Jewish dispensation; the Preface clearly defines the plan; yet the Reviewer, (what an incongruous name, and yet it is the only one he ever dare own,) after a few desultory remarks, quotes part. of a short speech, so as to destroy both sense and grainmar, and then cries,"Here certainly is no rival to Moses.” Rival to Moses! I suppose then he reckons Milton a successful rival-and Louth likewise of Isaiah-and Klopstock and Cumberland victorious over Maxthew, Mark, Luke, and John! But, in my case, sir, it happens that his quotation is not even the paraphrase of a Mosean passage: it is Joseph's supposed introductory account of himself to Potiphar. Was the critic only ignorant that there is no such scene in the Bible? I know not: the false view of the work, which he immediately adds, cannot so easily be excused. "Afterwards (continues this critic) we find him writing what Moses, without a very extraordi nary gift of prophecy, could not have written; and, it may reasonably be doubted, whether he would if he could." He then quotes three lines, chiefly names of modern missionaries. Now, sir, I beg leave to ask, does not this critique (without further troubling you or your readers) draw the direct inference that I speak in the name of Moses, or of some person of that period, or that I have made a prophetical attempt, or, at least, been guilty of an anachronism? It is neither neither of the cases, sir, but a plain apostrophe in my own character to the missionaries; and, out of my respect for their labours, I introduce their names, though of different churches, and ." not formed for metre." It is remarked in the Preface," critics not only condemn an author for what he has and has not done, but for what he does not profess or wish to do." These reviewers, I trust I have shown, go beyond this strong accusation, and falsely insinuate that I do that, which I neither directly nor indirectly have done, If it were to be asked, what could possibly induce any writers so to commit themselves? I answer, that they are anonymous, that they have no idea I can reply to them,-and that their nar row and bigotted notions are doubly of fended; first, that in my Preface I should treat reviewers lightly-and, secondly, that I, a clergyman of the Church of England, should write a work profes sedly religious, upon the broad basis of Catholic Christianity, and not to the inclusive honour and praise of our own establishment, and to the anathema of all other. To expose these malaperts will aid, I hope, the cause of every independent author, and gratify every reader, who has a mind of his own; and, still further to show their worthlessness, I could refer to half a dozen other articles in the same Review, which (I know not if all are alike false, but one concerning Henry Kirk White is,) are yet more illiberal, tri Hling, and erroneous, than that which has required an exposition from Avebury, Wills, Dec. 2, 1812. CHARLES LUCAS. To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine, IN SIR, N looking over the works of Bernardin de St. Pierre, the other day, my attention my arrested by his Voeur d'un· Solitaire; and particularly by those entitled, Voeux pour une Education Nationale. Among some pertinent observations are the following, to which I am not disposed to assent; he previously observes, that emulation should be banished from our schools. "L'Emulation (ays e) est la cause de la plupart des maux du genre humain. Elle est la racine de l'ambition; car l'emulation produit le' desir d'etre le premier; et le desir d'etre le premier, n'est autre chose que l'am bition, qui se partage, suivant les positions et les characteres, en ambitions po sitive et negative d'ou coulent pr tous les maux de la vie sociale.” Before I offer any remarks on sentiments, I would premise that, probability, and from what we lately seen and heard, the scien education is yet in its infancy; and the way in which it has been cond in Europe for many centuries, is no which is calculated to produce the and most permanent impression upo human mind. I am the more willi enter into a disquisition concernin propriety of the stimulus of emulati our schools, from having observed, a worthy friend of mine, whose wr are well known and esteemed b public, has hinted, that such a fe ought to be discouraged; now, alth I may be disposed to allow a due w to his opinion, yet we are not, I called upon to sacrifice our judg against the evidence of facts: it w well therefore to examine a little the nature of the case. If there be any truth in the doctr motives, of cause and effect, of and blame; and, if the human mi governed by motives; if, from one the earth to the other, we constant the same causes producing the effects; and that, consequently, wi motives, man cannot act at all; s must admit, that the binds of chi which are simply full-grown min miniature, must have some motive sented to them to stimulate them ertion, I say stimulate them to tion: now, if emulation be taken what stimulus are we to apply place? "Attach pleasure to their ing," says St. Pierre: and so, m pedibusque, say I: and where will y able to find any motive to apply t human mind with more pleasur force than emulation? The pleas excelling, in schools, does most ass lead to excellence; and 1 am of of that, as long as that feeling is not p to the injury or retardation of other (and here only lies the difficulty,) su pirations to fame and to excellence to be encouraged: but I am rea admit, that if, instead of produci proper object, Emulation become a of introducing envy, bickerings, and its proper object is lost, and it be of course, a mischief. Hence, it dent, that the weilding of this po auxiliary requires much skill, an band of an abie master: and here be necessary that the master shoul 1813.J true Impulses of Emulation. into the account the capacity of his pupil-his disposition for this or that particular study-the length of time it is intended he should pursue it; and, indeed, a variety of et cetera to be known only by application in individual cases, without all which, much valuable time will be irrecoverably lost. But, says St. Pierre, "Emulation is the root of Ambition," and therefore it must be torn up! It is an unfortunate circumstance for mankind, that Ambition is so often used in a bad sense, and in a bad cause; and to a benevolent mind, such as St. Pierre's appears to have been, it is no wonder that the only method which struck him as desireable, was to eradicate so base a passion as, in its worldly exemplification it is, I am sorry to say, too commonly found to be. However, we must not despair: St. Pierre might be mistaken; and so have been myriads of minds as benevolent as his. It is the province of true philosophy not to attempt to overturn, but to direct aright the powers of the human mind: if, upon investigation, it should be found that Emulation, or, if you please, Ambition, be a part of our nature, as I am inclined to think it is, the question will then be, not whether it should be eradicated or no, because if it be a part of our nature, that cannot be done; but, in what way may it be best directed? and that it may be directed both in youth and manhood, to the happiness and well-being of man, I entertain no shadow of doubt. If we could see this moral quality of the human mind, this scarecrow for the benevolent, the timid, and the well-meaning; this powerful steamengine of intellect-employed only for the welfare, the good, and the happiness, of mankind, how different would it then appear!-Instead of carrying fire then sword into the dwellings of our neigh bours-instead of laying waste a country, and rioting in the blood of our fellow creatures, let us imagine Ambition prompting mankind in the glorious career of truth, justice, and benevolence: instead of our exclaiming "Behold an Alexander, a Caesar, a Charles the Twelfth, or a Bonaparte;" imagine such characters held up to our execration, or at least to our pity, and the heroes of mercy, of peace, and of benevolence such men as Milton, as Locke, or as Howard, crowned with the laurels of Wisdom and of Peace, then may we hail Ambition with delight, as its deeds should shine forth as the morning! Instead 11 of men's being ambitious to outvie each other in deeds of prowess, and, what is falsely termed, military glory, let us imagine men only ambitious to do good→→ ambitious to excel one another in deeds of charity, benevolence, and love—ambitious to listen to that still small voice of wisdom, which at times is heard, even by our heroes of blood-ambitious to assist in the progression of intellect and the diffusion of truth; let us imagine, I say, such ambition, and I am very much deceived if it would not be accounted vir tuous, praiseworthy, and sublime. If there be any truth in these remarks, I think it will follow, that emulation and ambition, when applied to the pro'gression of intellect, and the happiness and well-being of men, are qualities of the buman mind by no means to be despised or superseded:-that our rules for judging of the propriety of their application are to be formed by the effects which the use of them produces, as in other moral qualities; that, where the effects are bad, it is to be presumed that the use of them is bad, as in war, coquest, and desolation: that, where the effects are good, as in instruction, benevolence, and happiness, their assist ance is sanctified, and their influence and use incontrovertibly good. JAMES JENNINGS. Huntspill, Dec. 22, 1812. P.S. Your readers will oblige me by correcting the following errors in my paper of your Magazine, for September last, page 104, column 2, line 11, for were read are-line 23, for propitious read monstrous-column 1, line 38, for referred read deferred. To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine, SIR, is not difficult to analyse the causes of the ascendency of Error among societies of Men; but to expose errors is dangerous, because, being engendered by deep rooted prejudices of education, and forstered by self-interest, they are maintained by active and vindictive Passions. An experienced Philosopher expressed his apprehension of those pas sions and prejudices when he declared, that, if his hand were full of Truths, he would not open it! Such an imperfect being is man-that Truth must always be exhibited in a way calculated to humour, and not to oppose, his prejudices--or those who are hardy enough to maintain it, must run the chance of being sacrificed to their temerity! "Is there in Sodom five righteous men? Is there in Israel fifty who are worthy to be saved?"Lives there in Britain one in twelve whom it is useful to address in the language of Truth?-In other words, can a votary of Truth, with no other protection than the native fascinations of the goddess, make an appeal, at present, to any tribunal in England, and escape the vindictive accusations of venality and prejudice ? Is there, at this day, to be found in England, among twelve nien indifferently taken, more than one or two who will uphold Truth against the blandishments of sophistry, falsehood, and corruption? In fine, are not many great Truths as obnoxious at this day, in England, as truth ever was, at any time, in any country in the world?-Might not any obsti nate stickler for Truth meet with martyrdom in England, as certainly as did the prophets and Jesus Christ among the Jews, as the Apostles among the Gentiles, or as the great Protestant reformers among the Catholics? Yet England, with almost the single exception of the United States of America, is the freest and most enlightened country in the world! In England there yet remains some scope for Truth! In an unrestrained, though terrified, press, she has here a stage on which to play a part; and she is not wholly fettered, banished, or strangled, as in many countries, Truth may still, therefore, solicit votaries in these islands, provided she deport herself with sufficient prudence and modesty! TRUTH then, O Britons! presents her self before you! She invites you to dis miss passion; and to discharge yourselves from the slavery of self-interest! She desires, in a choice of public difficulties, and at a crisis when your eternal fate, as a people, depends on your active in belligence and virtue, to point out your duties to yourselves and your neighbours! Will you listen to her, and give her countenance? Will you respect or despise her warnings? Will you create a new era in your submission to her reign; or will you reject her till the ascendency of wisdom becomes aseless to your prosperity? Listen then to the voice of Truth and, let her declarations, principles, and Counsels, sink deep into your hearts! TRUTH then, without adulation, admits that you are a great people; but that you have risen to greatness by means of commerce, like the Tyrians, the Carthaginjaus, the Venetians, the Genoese, and the Dutch; that those nations have fallen one after another, and that you may be in danger of falling also, from the operation of similar causes. TRUTH tells you that all those fallen people were corrupted by the influx of foreign wealth; were intoxicated by fo reign power; and were, finally, ambitious of universal dominion. TRUTH informs you that their wealth enabled them to intrigue in the councils of foreign princes; that they sought to direct the governments of the whole world; and that they were constantly meddling in the quarrels of their neighbours. TRUTH declares that, to serve the sinister purposes of their commerce, they stirred up wars among other nations; and considered that their welfare was best promoted by the strifes and calamities of all other people. TRUTH informs you that they were jealous of all competition; that they aimed at universal monopoly; and that they thought the only means of perpetuating their prosperity, was to allow n rivalry in matters of trade. TRUTH tells you that, in consequence of their overgrown wealth, inordinate ambition, and jealous policy, they were first envied, then feared, and, finally, hated and opposed, by the whole world. TRUTH records, that, to maintain their ascendency and pretensions, it became necessary to augment their fleets and armies; and to carry on wars against the nations which previously had been their customers, and the means of their ag grandizement. TRUTH warns you that their acquired wealth was soon dissipated in the main tenance of fleets and armies in foreign countries; that such drains were not resupplied by balances of trade as formerly; that credit was soon substituted for wealth; that paper, or alloyed money, took the place of the precious metals; and that the solid basis of public prose perity, founded on industry and balances of trade, gave way to temporizing projects and artifices. TRUTH records, that in those coun tries, as the Pride of the government increased, the miseries and oppressions of the people accumulated; and that, as the exigencies of the state augmented, pretexts became necessary for di minishing the liberties of the people. TRUTH tells you that, as the necessi❤ ties of the people accumulated with the public distresses, so individuals became more more willing to sell themselves to the government, and to assist in oppressing and enslaving their independent and less crafty fellow citizens. TRUTH records that, during the internal and external contentions of those people, the energetic, industrious, and useful part of the community, emigrated to exercise their talents and experience in foreign countries, thereby transferring to them the foundation of their native country's greatness. is the prosperity, and dangerous to the very existence, of those nations whose strength is founded on their commerce; and that public distress is unfavourable to public spirit, and fatal to the energies of public liberty. TRUTH tells you that, without liberty, there is no security for person and property; and that, without security of per son and property, individual industry, the soul of commerce, can never exist in any country. TRUTH illustrates that, in the climax TRUTH reminds you that, in Britain, of their national misfortunes, all the the security of public liberty depends on fences and securities of civil liberty were the free and independent Representation destroyed one after another, so that of the people in the legislature; and that public freedom, public spirit, public glory, the security of personal liberty and propublic prosperity, and often national in-perty depends on the unbiassed convendependence, were extinguished together! tion and full powers of Juries. TRUTH reminds you that Tyre fell a victim to its meddling policy-Carthage to its ambition-Venice to the tyranny of its government-Genoa to foreign wars-and Holland to the corruptions consequent on overgrown wealth. TRUTH admits that your geographical position and territorial circumstances are more advantageous than the territory and position of those people; and that the prolongation of your national independence rests less than theirs on extra neous circumstances and warlike atchieve ments. TRUTH tells you, however, that all the prosperity, wealth, and power, which arise from foreign commerce, are subject to common laws; and that in these respects, without increased caution and wisdom, you are doomed to follow the fate of other great commercial powers, and sink to the secondary rank prescribed by your territory and population. TRUTH proclaims, that the commerce and power of the British Islands arise out of their insular security, their coinmanding geographical position, their political liberty, their staple commodities, and the characteristic energy and industry of their inhabitants, all existing antecedently to their present ascendency. TRUTH declares, that, as the ascendency of the British empire has arisen from the gradual and unpremeditated operation of natural and inherent causes, those efficient causes are adequate to sustain the ascendency which they have conferred, without the hazard of wars to assert abstract powers and commercial rights, which did not originally tend to raise the country to its present eminence. TRUTH reminds you, by a never-failing experience, that wars are alien to TRUTH declares, that public liberty and personal security must be lost to the people of England whenever any considerable part of the House of Commons is nominated by the minister of the day, and becomes identified with the executive government; and whenever Juries, who are to try questions between the crown and the subject, can be picked from among the freeholders by an officer of the crown, instead of being returned by the sheriff in regular rotation. TRUTH then suggests it as your duty to hold sacred those Bulwarks of your freedom as the bases of your public prosperity; to treat as public enemies those who dare to impair them; and to despise, as unnatural sycophants of power, those who decry your unremitting and zealous exertions to maintain them. TRUTH, in like manner, calls your attention to the confusion and uncertainty of your laws, which have been the growth of a thousand years, of bad as well as good times, and of ages of superstition, ignorance, and despotism, as well as of epochs of liberty; and it tells you that your entire legal system demands a radical reform and regeneration. TRUTH tells you that the liberty and glory of a country must be utterly destroyed, if, after the great barriers of liberty are undermined, slavery is made palatable by the corruptions and subjugation of the public press, thereby reconciling the people to their chains, holding up truth and virtue to the scorn of ignorance and credulity, and hunting down and persecuting all the honest exertions of expiring patriotism. TRUTH declares that the exportation and disappearance of your specie, is symptomatic of the decay of your public wealth |